How to choose the right golf club
| Golf club types | Distance (yards) |
| 4-iron | 170 |
| 5-iron | 160 |
| 6-iron | 150 |
| 7-iron | 140 |
How many irons are in a set of golf clubs?
Irons are the most common type of club; a standard set of 14 golf clubs will usually contain between 7 and 11 irons, including wedges.
What is a 1 iron in golf?
There is an actual club called the 1 iron which is the longest and lowest lofted iron, typically with 14 or 16 degrees of loft. This makes it tough to hit for most golfers. Because golfers are only permitted to carry fourteen clubs in their bags at any time, most players don’t carry a 1 iron.
What are the different types of golf clubs?
There are several different types of golf clubs in a typical golfer's bag. In fact, today, there are five categories of clubs: woods (including the driver), irons, hybrids, wedges and putters. What are these clubs? What are the qualities of each type of club, and its uses?
How many clubs do you need to play golf?
So that's it – we have our set of 14 clubs. To review, you are going to carry a driver, a three wood, a five wood, three hybrid clubs, an iron set from six to pitching wedge, a sand wedge, a lob wedge, and a putter. Such a set makeup will serve the average beginning golfer quite well, as there are no 'holes' in that set which will hold you back.
Is there a 7 iron golf club?
5-iron = 160 yards. 6-iron = 150 yards. 7-iron = 140 yards.
Is there an 8 iron golf club?
Long irons are the 2-, 3- ,and 4-irons; mid-irons, the 5-, 6-, and 7-irons; short irons, the 8- and 9-irons and pitching wedge. (Two-irons are becoming obsolete and are exceedingly rare for recreational golfers. Because of this, some sources now count the 5-iron as one of the long irons.
How many different irons are there?
Irons are divided into three sets; long irons (2, 3 and 4-irons), mid-irons (5, 6 and 7-irons) and short irons (8 and 9-irons, plus the pitching wedge). Long irons are used to hit the ball further with a shorter loft, while the short irons are designed to produce a higher loft.
Is there a 5 iron golf club?
Iron golf club construction 5 iron, the 5 iron will have a lower trajectory and shorter carry distance but more roll and more control. A 5 iron golf club will have a loft of anywhere from 21 to 27 degrees.
What is a 9 iron used for?
The 8 and 9 irons are commonly called the "short irons". They have the highest-mass clubheads and the shortest shafts of the numbered irons, and are used for shots requiring high loft or moderate to short distance (typically between 130 and 150 yards with a full swing).
How far does a 7 iron go?
A PGA Tour player hits a 7-iron between 172-215 yards. Meanwhile, a short-hitting amateur male golfer averages 120 yards with the same club. Men, women, seniors, juniors, professionals, amateurs and beginners all hit their clubs different distances.
What 14 clubs do pros carry?
Professional golfers generally carry: a driver, 3 wood, 5 wood, 4-PW, gap wedge, sand wedge, lob wedge, and a putter. Depending on the pro, these setups may change slightly, including the use of a driving iron, hybrid, or other longer club in place of one of the woods.
What are the types of irons?
Types of Irons For GolfForged Irons. Forging a club is very similar to what the village blacksmith used to do. ... Cast Irons. The alternative to forged irons is the cast iron. ... Blade Irons. ... Cavity Back Irons.Sets Of Irons. ... Hybrid Sets Of Irons. ... Steel Shafts. ... Graphite Shafts.More items...
How many golf clubs are there?
The standard 12 clubs in many golf bags may include the following: Three (3) woods – driver, 3-wood and 5-wood. Eight (8) irons – 3-9 iron and pitching wedge. Putter.
Do pros use 3 irons?
Hell, only 20 percent of PGA Tour players carry a 3-iron that's not a utility iron. That number fades to almost nonexistent on the LPGA Tour.
How far does a 9-iron go?
Golf Club Distances TableCLUBMEN'S AVERAGE DISTANCEWOMEN'S AVERAGE DISTANCE7-iron140 yards120 yards8-iron130 yards110 yards9-iron120 yards100 yardsPitching wedge110 yards90 yards10 more rows•May 6, 2022
Do I need a 5 or 6 iron?
The only golfer who should carry a 5 iron is one that can hit their 7 iron more than 150 yards. Golfers who hit their 7 iron less than 150 yards should replace their 5 iron with a hybrid and have a 6 iron as their longest iron.
What is an iron in golf?
Irons in a golf bag. An iron is a type of club used in the sport of golf to propel the ball towards the hole. Irons typically have shorter shafts and smaller clubheads than woods, the head is made of solid iron or steel, and the head's primary feature is a large, flat, angled face, usually scored with grooves.
How many clubs can you have with a driver and two fairway irons?
This usually comes at the cost of having to remove other clubs, often the long irons, from the bag in order to meet the 14-club limit; with a driver and two fairway irons or hybrids, for a player to have four wedges, they must start their numbered irons at the four-iron instead of the three.
Why are long irons so difficult to hit?
Long irons are traditionally regarded as the most difficult to hit, because their low loft gives them a very small striking face and "sweet spot" compared to higher-lofted irons. As such, they are less commonly seen in players' bags, usually replaced with higher-lofted fairway woods like the 5 and 7, or with hybrid clubs that have similar overall performance but are easier to hit. The 2-iron, like the driving iron, is virtually never seen in modern sets, due to both its difficulty and to a "de-lofting" of modern cavity-backed irons which increases the average distance of shorter irons. If the long irons are used, they are often seen with graphite shafts to add additional clubhead speed to the average golfer's swing by storing energy from the downswing and releasing it at impact. Hybrid clubs that replace these irons also often have graphite shafts for the same reason.
Why are graphite irons better than long irons?
These irons often have graphite shafts in newer sets, even when shorter irons have steel; the graphite will give better distance for the average golfer at the cost of some loss of consistency due to shaft torquing.
Why does the shaft length of an iron decrease as the iron's number increases?
This reduced length means that a clubhead of the same mass traveling at the same angular velocity (degrees per second , as swung by a golfer) has lower momentum because the clubhead's speed is slower. To combat this, higher-numbered iron clubheads are heavier than lower-numbered iron heads; there is generally a 1⁄4 -ounce (7 g) increase in mass between one clubhead and the next higher number.
How are irons made?
Although most irons are now produced by investment casting , many high end iron sets are still produced by forging, as the resulting clubhead is easier to adjust by bending to adapt the set to a player's specific needs. The resulting club is also generally thought to have an improved "feel" due to the softer consistency of the forged metal as opposed to cast.
What is a wedge iron called?
Irons with higher loft than the numbered irons are called wedges, which are typically marked with a letter indicating their name, and are used for a variety of "utility" shots requiring short distances or high launch angles. Prior to about 1940, irons were given names rather than numbers.
How many golf clubs can you carry in your bag?
According to the rules of golf, you are allowed to carry at most 14 golf clubs in your bag. The restrictions are only on the number of clubs you can carry. But there is no restriction on the type of clubs. From driver to putter, you can have whatever you like.
Which club is the most used in golf?
Arguably putter is the most important club in the golf game as it is used the most.
What is the largest clubhead size?
It has the largest clubhead and hitting area among all other golf clubs. The largest and the most popular driver clubhead has a size of 460cc.
What is a fairway wood club?
These are familiar names in golf. Fairway wood club essentially means 3, 5 and 7 wood club and also has other loft ranges in its category.
Why are hybrid golf clubs used?
Hybrid golf clubs are most commonly known as the club for recreational golfers. It’s because of the ease at which you can make strokes. But, professionals have slowly started to use them due to their added advantages. With a hybrid club, you get a clubhead of a larger surface area.
How to choose a golf club?
But as a general rule, the best way to choose a club is to know your hitting range first. So, if you know your shortest and longest range, from there, you can build up your golf club collection. A number factor comes into play choosing a golf club like distance, placement, and conditions of play.
Why do iron clubs spin?
In irons, there are deeper grooves in its club heads which runs from toe to the heel. You may have heard or seen that iron clubs generate extra spin on the ball, this is mainly because of these grooves. So, when you can make a spin on the ball, controlling the shot becomes easy.
How Far Can I Hit a 1 Iron?
Naturally, there are lots of factors that influence how far you can hit a 1 iron, but men can reasonably expect to hit it between 180 – 220 yards, providing they execute the shot perfectly. Women tend to hit the 1 iron slightly shorter, but could still hope for 160+ yards from a good shot.
What is a 1 Iron Equivalent to?
Given its loft of between 14-16 degrees, a 1 iron is equivalent to a 3 or 4 wood in the golf bag. As such, if you typically carry either of these fairway woods, it’s probably not necessary to bag a 1 iron as well.
Do Any Pros Use a 1 Iron?
It’s fair to say that the 1 iron has all but disappeared from the modern professional golf game, with very few (if any) current PGA pros bagging a 1 iron. However, the 1 iron used to be a popular feature in the bag of the biggest names in golf before technology advanced.
Does Callaway Make a 1 Iron?
Yes, Callaway forges 1 i rons as part of their offer to golfers at all levels of the game. One of their most popular 1 irons was the Steelhead x-14 driving iron, but they also make custom driving irons upon request.
Can You Replace a 1 Iron with a Driver?
Technically, you can replace a 1 iron with a driver. Ultimately, it’s entirely up to you what you carry in your golf bag. However, as mentioned already, a 1 iron carries equivalent loft to a 3 or 4 wood, so it’s best to replace one of these clubs with your new 1 iron if you so desire.
Why is a 1 Iron Hard to Hit?
The main reason that a 1 iron is so hard to hit is because of its loft . At just 14 or 16 degrees, this makes it extremely difficult for recreational golfers to hit consistently good shots with the desired trajectory.
Is a 1 Iron Legal?
Just like every other iron, a 1 iron is legal to carry in your bag . But that being said, it’s not overly common in the game today. Most golfers have ditched long irons (1-3) and have opted for woods and hybrids, which essentially perform the same role but are much easier to hit.
How many different types of golf clubs are there?
There are several different types of golf clubs in a typical golfer's bag. In fact, today, there are five categories of clubs: woods (including the driver), irons, hybrids, wedges and putters.
What are the names of old golf clubs?
Names of Old Golf Clubs. Golf clubs have changed quite a bit over the long history of the sport. There used to be clubs with names like mashie and niblick and jigger and spoon.
What is wedge golf?
The wedges are the highest-lofted golf clubs. They are used for shorter approach shots into greens, for chips and pitches around greens, and for playing out of sand bunkers.
What is a clubhead in golf?
Clubheads: Clubheads can be a traditional blade; a heel-toe clubhead; or a mallet clubhead. A traditional blade is narrow and shallow, typically with the shaft entering at the heel (although sometimes center-shafted). Heel-toe putters have the same general shape as blades, but with extra weight at the heel and toe to add perimeter weighting, and with other design tricks to help make the clubs more "forgiving" on mishits. Mallet putters have large clubheads that maximize that forgiveness of poor contact. Mallets come in a variety of shapes and sizes, some very large and quite unusual.
What is the loft of an iron?
Irons have angled faces (called "loft") etched with grooves that help grip the golf ball and impart spin. They are generally used on shots from the fairway, or for tee shots on short holes. As the number of an iron goes up (5-iron, 6-iron, etc.), the loft increases while the length of the shaft decreases. Meet the Hybrids.
What is a wood golf club?
The category of golf clubs called "woods" includes the driver and the fairway woods. (They are called woods even though their clubheads are no longer made of wood.) The woods are the clubs with the largest heads (typically hollow, extending a few inches from side-to-side and a few inches from front to back, with rounded lines) ...
How long is a mallet putter?
Lengths: Standard-length putters, often referred to as "conventional putters," range from around 32 to 36 inches long, from one end to the other.
What clubs do you need to make a golf club set?
Traditionally, golfers carry a driver, a couple of fairway woods, some irons, specialty irons called wedges, and of course, a putter.
What is the longest club in golf?
The driver is the longest club in the golf bag. It also has the lowest loft, which makes it a difficult club to master. Some drivers promote particular kinds of tee shots, like a draw. Many golfers carry a driver , but some prefer to hit a 3 wood off the tee. The 3 wood and other woods can be used for long and straight fairway shots.
What is a golf club wedge?
Wedges. Wedges are high-loft specialty irons designed for a specific purpose. A complete set of golf clubs typically includes at least two wedges, usually the pitching wedge and sand wedge. The pitching wedge is used close to the green, and the sand wedge is used out of fairway bunkers and sand traps around the green.
How far should a hybrid iron be from a fairway?
Hybrids typically come in lofts of 16 to 26 degrees. Your lowest numbered hybrid should get a distance of approximately 10 yards shorter than your highest numbered fairway wood. Players might replace a 3 and 4 iron with hybrids from 3 to 6.
Why are hybrid clubs so popular?
Hybrid clubs have become favorites with beginners and advanced players alike, because they are designed to provide the distance and accuracy of long irons, but they are easier to use. The design of a hybrid offers a larger clubface like a wood, combined with a shorter shaft like an iron.
Can you putt a golf club without a putter?
No set of golf clubs is complete without a putter for use on the green.
How many clubs are in an iron set?
Let's call your iron set from six iron through pitching wedge, meaning it will consist of five total clubs. You are also going to add a sand wedge to the mix, taking up one additional spot.
How many clubs do you need for a golf bag?
Picking Bag. Final Thoughts. While you're in the novice stage as a golfer, you don't really need a full set of 14 clubs (the maximum allowed by the rules). In fact, you're better off cutting that number down nine or 10, which will make club selection easier on the course and boost the quality of your practice.
How long does it take to walk around a golf course?
Golf might not seem like a physically strenuous endeavor, but it can be quite tiring after walking five miles around a full-size course – especially if the course features a hilly layout. Many golf bags are designed with walkers in mind, so pick from this category if you plan to walk. For riders, picking a bag is an easier task, as you don't have to worry much about size or weight. As long as the bag can be strapped onto the back of a cart, you will be good to go.
What should a golf bag include?
Every golfer's bag should include a driver, or #1 wood. You'll use it to tee off on most if not all par 4 and par 5 holes, and possibly some par 3s as well. Beginners should use a driver with plenty of loft, which helps lift the ball higher in the air. Look for a loft of at least 10.5° and as much as 13°.
What is the number of long irons in a starter set?
There's no reason to have any iron numbered lower than 5 in your starter set (the long irons are numbered 2-4). These days, even experienced and skilled golfers typically use hybrid clubs instead of long irons, which are notoriously difficult to hit well.
What is a good golf club for beginners?
A five wood. Most five woods have somewhere in the neighborhood of 18 degrees of loft, and they hit the ball higher and shorter than a three wood. These are good clubs for beginning golfers to carry because they are easy to get off the ground, they can work for tee shots when your driver is giving you trouble, and they are useful out of the light rough as well. You don't see a lot of five woods in the professional ranks, but that isn't any of your concern at this point. For now, as a beginner, you will likely love the performance a five wood can offer.
How to get rid of old golf clubs?
Golfers tend to accumulate clubs over the years, so there is a good chance that some of your friends who play the game will have extra gear sitting in their garage. You might get these clubs given to you for free, or you may be able to negotiate a deal. Either way, you will have saved some money and your friend will likely be happy to make space by moving out the old clubs . If you don't know anyone who plays golf, you could also make a trip to some local garage sales on a Saturday afternoon – you will find the same kind of gear for equally low prices.
Set Composition
Loft, Length, and Distance
- As you go through the set, from the 3-iron to the pitching wedge, each iron has a little more loft than the previous, and a little shorter shaft length than the previous, so each club (going from 3-iron to PW) hits the golf ball a little less distance than the previous. That is, a 5-iron has more loft, a shorter shaft, and produces shorter shots than the 4-iron; the 4-iron has more loft, a shorter sh…
Long, Mid-, and Short Irons
- Irons are generally categorized as long irons, mid-irons , and short irons. Long irons are the 2-, 3- ,and 4-irons; mid-irons, the 5-, 6-, and 7-irons; short irons, the 8- and 9-irons and pitching wedge. (Two-irons are becoming obsolete and are exceedingly rare for recreational golfers. Because of this, some sources now count the 5-iron as one of the long irons. We still classify it as a mid-iron…
Distances
- Learning your distances—how far you hit each club—is much more important than trying to hit each club to some predetermined "correct" yardage. There is no "right" distance for each club, there is only your distance. That said, a typical male recreational golfer might hit a 4-, 5-, or 6- iron from 150 yards, while a typical female might use a 3-wood, 5-wood, or 3-iron from that distance. …
Hitting
- Irons can be played from the teeing ground, using a golf tee, and it is often appropriate to do so. On a par-3 hole, for example, you will probably use an iron on your tee shot. Or you might use an iron off any (or even every) tee in order to have better control over the shot. But most of your iron shots will come from the fairway. Irons are designed with divots in mind. That's why they have a …
Overview
An iron is a type of club used in the sport of golf to propel the ball towards the hole. Irons typically have shorter shafts and smaller clubheads than woods, the head is made of solid iron or steel, and the head's primary feature is a large, flat, angled face, usually scored with grooves. Irons are used in a wide variety of situations, typically from the teeing ground on shorter holes, from the fairway or r…
Design and manufacture
Historically all irons were forged from a flat piece of metal, which produced a thin clubhead that resembled a blade. Modern investment casting processes enabled manufacturers to easily mass-produce clubs with consistent properties. This manufacturing process was first used by Ping, and also made it possible to take weight out of the back of the clubhead and distribute it around the perimeter. …
Components
Investment casting, while allowing for a greater range of design options, produces a very stiff and inflexible head that can be difficult to adjust for a player's desired lie and loft. Forged irons, while they allow for easier and a greater range of adjustments, are limited in the designs that may be achieved.
The shaft length of an iron decreases as the iron's number increases; therefore the iron number i…
Types of irons
Most irons in a player's bag are labelled with a number indicating their loft; the higher the number, the higher the loft. A matched set of irons will have a regular, progressive increase in loft through the irons, which may differ from set to set due to other design considerations that can affect launch angle and distance. Irons have been seen ranging in number from 0 through 12, but the most common number range in the modern iron set is 3 to 9.
See also
• Obsolete golf clubs
External links
• Best Golf Irons for High Handicappers
• Blade Irons Vs Cavity-Back Irons
• Public patent information on muscle-back iron
• Public patent information on cavity-back iron